The official blog of Historical Fantasy Author, Mary Anne Yarde, and home to The Coffee Pot Book Club.
Come and join me on the hunt for everything mythological, as well as historical. Oh, and let's not forget the odd book or two! Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy...

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Tuesday, 26 September 2017

New Release ~ Heroines of the Medieval World #History #Medieval @Thehistorybits

Heroines of the Medieval World

by Sharon Bennett Connolly

These are the stories of women, famous, infamous and unknown, who shaped
the course of medieval history. The lives and actions of medieval women were
restricted by the men who ruled the homes, countries and world they lived in.
It was men who fought wars, made laws and dictated religious doctrine. It was
men who were taught to read, trained to rule and expected to fight.

Today, it is easy to think that all women from this era were downtrodden,
retiring and obedient housewives, whose sole purpose was to give birth to
children (preferably boys) and serve their husbands. Heroines of the Medieval
World looks at the lives of the women who broke the mould: those who defied
social norms and made their own future, consequently changing lives, society
and even the course of history.

Some of the women are famous, such as Eleanor of Aquitaine, who was not only a
duchess in her own right but also Queen Consort of France through her first
marriage and Queen Consort of England through her second, in addition to being
a crusader and a rebel. Then there are the more obscure but no less remarkable
figures such as Nicholaa de la Haye, who defended Lincoln Castle in the name of
King John, and Maud de Braose, who spoke out against the same king’s excesses
and whose death (or murder) was the inspiration for a clause in Magna Carta.

Women had to walk a fine line in the Middle Ages, but many learned to survive –
even flourish – in this male-dominated world. Some led armies, while others
made their influence felt in more subtle ways, but all made a contribution to
their era and should be remembered for daring to defy and lead in a world that
demanded they obey and follow.

Sharon
Bennett Connolly, has been fascinated by history for over 30 years now. She has
studied history academically and just for fun – and even worked as a tour guide
at historical sites, including Conisbrough Castle.

Born in Yorkshire, she studied at University in Northampton before working in
Customer Service roles at Disneyland in Paris and Eurostar in London.

She is now having great fun, passing on her love of the past to her son,
hunting dragons through Medieval castles or exploring the hidden alcoves of
Tudor Manor Houses.

For Christmas 2014, her husband gave her her very own blog – History ... the
Interesting Bits allowing her to indulge in that love of history. Sharon
started researching and writing about the lesser-known stories and people from
European history, the stories that have always fascinated. Quite by accident,
she started focusing on medieval women. And in 2016 she was given the
opportunity to write her first non-fiction book, Heroines of the Medieval
World, which will be published by Amberley in September 2017.